Type-writer tabulating mechanism.



J. H. PILLINGS. TYPE WRITER TABULATING MECHANISM. APPLICATiON FILED JUNE 9.1915.

1,235,158. Patented July 31,1917.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

J'OHN H. PIIJIIINGS, OF HAMILTON, OHIO, ASSIGNOR TO THE NATIONAL AUTOMATIC TYPEWBITEB COMPANY, OF HAMILTON, OHIO, A CORPORATION OFOHIO.

TYPE-WRITER TABULATIN G MECHANISM.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JOHN H. PILLINGS, a citizen of the United States, residing at Hamilton, in the county of Butler and State of Ohio, have inventd a certain new and useful Improvement in Type-Writer Tabulating Mechanism, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description.

Nearly all commercial typewriters are equipped with tabulating mechanism. This commonly includes a tabulator frame, which. carries a series of adjustable tabulator stops. This tabulator frame extends crosswise of the machine behind the carriage," and is pivoted to the side frame members of the machine on a horizontal axis which is adjacent the lower edge of said frame. The normal position of this frame is such that its stops are behind the path of a shoulder with which the carriage is provided for engaging them. The said frame is however, suitably connected with a key lever so that when said key lever is depressed, the tabulator frame will be swung forward thereby carrying its stops into the path of said shoulder on the carriage.

Also, there is mechanism which, as said tabulator frame is so swung forward, re-

leases the carriage to the influence of its actuating spring, and allows the spring to move the carriage to the left'until it is brought to a standstill by the engagement of said carriage shoulder with a tabulator stop. As such tabulator mechanism has heretofore been constructed, it has been necessary for the operator to actuate the tabulator key with a different touch tothat em ployed in operating the character keys; that 1s to say, he can not operate the tabulator key with the quick staccatoblow employed in connection with the other keys; but on the contrary, must hold the tabulator key down an appreciable time until the carriage has moved into contact with the tabulator stop and has been brought to a standstill by contact therewith. This is objectionable in a manually operated typewriter; but it is worse in a typewriter which is to be operated automatically by a machine which is controlled by a perforated controller strip. In fact, typewriters having the ordinary tabulator mechanism can not be used in con nection with such typewriter operating machines, unless the latter is complicated by the presence of mechanism for holding the Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented J l ly 31, 1917.

Application filed June 9 1915. Serial No. 32,999.

tabulator frame in its operative position for an appreciable time, and until it has per-z formed its functions 1 The present invention relates to improvements in the kind of tabulator mechanism above referred to, and the object of the invention is to provide the typewriter with simple mechanism which, when the tabu lator frame has been moved to the operative position will automatically hold it there .until it has performed its function, and which will cause its return to its normal inoperative position when that function has been performed.

The invention consists in'the construction and combination of parts shown in the drawing and hereinafter described and pointed out claims.

In the drawing,'Figure 1 is a rear elevation of so much of an ordinary typewriter as is required to show the present invention as applied thereto; Fig. 2 is a side elevation of such typewriter mechanism, the tabulator frame being sectioned; Fig. 3 is a plan view of the rear part of such typewriter mechanism.

Referring to the parts by numerals, 10 and 12 represent the two side frame members of an ordinary typewriter; 14 represents the transversely movable carriage which must be associated with the usual carriage operating and controlling mechanism; and 15 is the shoulder on said carriage which is provided for engagement with the tabulator stops.

16 represents the tabulator frame. This lies behind the carriage and extendscross- Wise of the machine, and is pivoted to the two side frame members on a horizontal axis adjacent its lower edge. This frame carries a series of adjustable stops 17; and the frame 16 normally is swung rearward to a position such that said stops 17 are behind the path in which said shoulder 15 moves. "3 18 represents a tabulator-key, and 19 a link which connects the same with an arm 20 fixed to the tabulator frame, whereby the depression of this A key will rock the is common in many commercial typewriters,

except this, viz., that ordinarilyv the tabuladefinitely in the appended tor frame is incapable of any substantial endwise movement in the direction of its supporting axis, whereas, the present invention requires that the said frame is capable of so moving. To bring this about, the frame 16 is made slightly shorter than the distance between the two side frame member 10 and 12, and the trunnions 22, 22, which said frame carries are movable endwise in holes 10 and 12 in said side frame members. Likewise, a spring 23 is provided for moving said frame to the right to its normal position after it has been displaced as will be described.

25 represents a stop block which is fixed to the rear side of said frame. 26 represents an adjacently placed fixed bracket. 27 represents a spring pawl which is pivoted to the top of said bracket. This lies between two shoulders 28 and 29, one of which, 29, is preferably in the form of an adjustment screw, while the other furnishes a support for the pawl actuating spring 30. The length and position of this pawl are such, as shown in Fig. 3, that when the tabulator frame is in its normal inoperative position, the left side of the pawl near its front end engages the right side of said stop block. But when the ta'bulator frame is swung forward the stop block is moved out of contact with this pawl, which thereupon jumps behind the stop block, and by engaging its rear face prevents the backward swinging of said tabulator frame. The carriage, which has been contemporaneously released by the usual mechanism for that purpose, will now slide to the left under the influence of the spring which is a part of the ordinary typewriter mechanism, and this will cause the shoulder 15 to strike a tabulator stop 17 with force enough to cause the tabulator frame to move'to the left. This will carry the stop block 25 out of contact with the pawl 27 thereupon the tabulator frame will swing rearward to an inoperative position, and then the spring 23 will move it to the right to its normal position. When this has been done, the pawl 27 is again engaging the right side of the block, as shown and above described; in fact, the parts have returned to their normal position in readiness to again operate in the described manner and sequence.

spring actuated sliding carriage having a stop engaging shoulder, of a tabulator frame which is located behind said carriage and is pivoted on an axis which is substantially parallel with the path of said carriage and is movable a short distance lengthwise in the direction of its axis, a stop carried by said tabulator frame adapted to be engaged by said shoulder on the carriage to impart endwise movement to said tabulator frame, a spring acting to move said tabulator frame endwise in the opposite direction, a spring pawl which when said frame is swung forward will automatically engage a part of said frame and prevent it from swinging rearward, means limiting the movement of said pawl in such wise that the endwise movement of said frame which results from the contact of said shoulder on the carriage and stop on the tabulator frame will disengage the frame from said pawl.

2. In a typewriter, the combination with a spring actuated sliding carriage havmg a stop engaging shoulder, of a tabulator frame which is located behind said carriage and is pivoted on an axis which is substantially parallel with the path of said carriage and is movable a short distance lengthwise in the direction of its axis, a stop carried by said tabulator frame adapted to be engaged by said shoulder on the carriage to impart endwise movement to said tabulator frame, a spring acting to move said tabulator frame endwise in the opposite direction, a stop block fixed to the rear side of said tabulator frame and a pivoted spring pawl adjacent said stop block and adapted to engage one edge of said stop block when the frame is in its normal position, but which will move into engagement with the rear face of said stop block when the frame is swung forward, and means which prevents said pawl from moving beyond that position in which the sto bar will be disengaged from it by that en wise movement of the frame which results from the impact of the shoulder on the carriage against a stop on said frame.

In testimony .whereof, I hereunto afiix my signature in the presence of two witnesses.

JOHN H. PILLINGS. Witnesses:

A. H. LoUIs, A. F. KIEFER. 

